Gadchiroli (Maharashtra): At least seven Maoists were gunned down in a fierce gun battle with security forces in Nargunda-Bhatpar tribal area of Gadchiroli district on Thursday morning, a police official said.

The gun battle, which started early on Thursday, is still continuing, police said. They recovered seven bodies of Maoists killed in the operations. Security officials suspect that the casualty among the militants could be higher.

The gun battle between security people and Maoists was still taking place in the thickly forested region close to the Maharashtra-Chhattisgarh border, an official of the district control room confirmed.

Considered among the worst Maoist-infested districts, Gadchiroli in the Vidarbha region is around 1,000 km to the east of Mumbai, and 175 km from Nagpur, the second capital of Maharashtra.